Best Infomercial Fails
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Best Infomercial Fails
Featured 01/11/2016
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The sick religion of islam is plunging the world into the third world war, and all we can talk about is how "Leo threw shade on Gaga, yo". Fuck all of you.
1:10 catastrophic... worse than African kids
Leonardo figures if he eats enough gross shit, and speaks an obscure enough language, that everyone will forget he cant act.
Do you think women should be able to obtain hormonal contraceptives directly from a pharmacy, without having to go to a doctor for a prescription first?
If it prevents unwanted pregnancy then absolutely. But only if she has big cans.
Showing the actual infomercials would have been 100x more interesting and funny.
Sucker just pay shipping and handle it..
J always liked the infomercial where the guy tries to fish with a lawnmower. Lol! What a crazy old coot!!
Heheh- its called LookngForCock with a rooster avatar!! Heheh.
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From tape measurers to butt odor, there are fails galore.
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Everyone's got a favorite, so upload the funniest infomercial fail via the DropBox below!
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Jeff Kurani, Founder of Tekno Products Inc.
There are more than 10 reasons infomercials and short form spots fail. However, we wanted to outline some of the clearly avoidable and not-so-obvious pitfalls where we see many product owners and companies stumble through this process.
So, even if you’re already a savvy marketer, this article will serve to reinforce your genius or surprise even you.
I’ve interviewed Jeff Kurani who’s happy to share some of his thoughts on why some infomercials fail. Kurani founded Tekno Products Inc., delivering sales of more than $100 million annually while manufacturing and distributing hundreds of popular high quality products such as BootyMax, Draw Jammies and Quick Taco. The award-winning Draw Jammies sold 1.7 million units in the first five months. With personal sales of more than $1.5 billion, Kurani has secured more than 90 active SKUs at major retailers in the United States and abroad in the household, hardware, tools, sporting goods, and health/beauty care categories.
With his over 20 years’ experience in the licensing, manufacturing and distribution business industry, he has seen various types of infomercials that are cringe-worthy .
So, let’s what most of these failed infomercials have in common.
# 10 Dentists Performing Brain Surgery
Mistake: Not hiring infomercial experts & underestimating the need and value of a specialist.
Now that sounds ridiculous! Who in their right mind would let a dentist perform brain surgery? But, they’re both doctors. They both went to medical school. They both have some of the same equipment. And even though you might save a little money if you let the dentist do it… it’s just not worth it. Why? Because they have totally different specialties! And the same goes for the company that creates your infomercial.
Don’t let some video production company that makes all sorts of other kinds of videos make your infomercial. Because unless they specialize in direct response marketing there is no way they understand all the nuances, and critical decisions that go into a production that is designed to sell. From the scripting to offer development, product positioning, and backend such as call centers, and so much more. Every element makes a difference, a significant difference.
Now maybe this isn’t brain surgery but there certainly many aspects of the project that require a specialist. So, do yourself a favor and hire a company that makes infomercials and ONLY infomercials to handle your project. Other companies may have the equipment to make you a video, but if all the time and money and effort is wasted on something that is destined to fail what’s the point.
Mistake: Trying to sell a niche product through mass media
I like to use this example because every home has a mop and a mattress. Whether it’s a million-dollar mansion and they have a ten-thousand-dollar mattress and their live-in maid uses the mop or it’s a middle-class family. Everyone needs it.
You must ask yourself, “Does our product have a broad appeal?”. Does it appeal to the masses? Does it have enough of a potential audience to be run across many channels? Because the broader the market the more likely your success.
As an example, if your product is for Great Dane owners’ TV is probably not for you. If it’s for ALL dogs then, yes. My point is very niche products are generally not good TV products.
Now I can give you dozens of examples of successful products just for golfers, fishermen, women, children, men over 50 and more. But those tend to be the exception to the rule, rather than the rule. So, when you are considering direct response television keep in mind its mass media, and mass retailers that make up the majority of the sales.
#8 Voodoo Math: Margins and Markups
Mistake: Not properly accounting for the needed markup to cover media costs
OK you have hired an experienced company; you have a product with great appeal to the masses. But do your numbers work? One of the first things we do when we are interviewing a new potential client, is figure out if their costs of goods is in line with the product offer and if there is enough margin for media. Yes, we interview our clients. If the project is destined to fail, we don’t want to waste our time and our client’s money. So, what does that mean? As an industry rule of thumb, you need a 4 to 5 X’s markup from your cost of goods to be potentially profitable on television.
Your product costs $4 to make. You want to sell it on TV for $19.95. Perfect that works.
Your product costs $10 and you want to sell it for $19.95. No way. You will lose money on every sale.
Now in many cases we can help our clients lower their costs of good through negotiating volume deals with their manufacturer or finding them new manufacturing overseas. But otherwise you would have to sell that $10 cost of goods product for no less than $49.99 for it to work. The bottom line is you can’t lose a dollar on every sale and make it up in volume.
Mistake: Over pricing your product to meet the margins
So, your cost of goods is too high to make the margins work. If we had a dollar for every time we have heard, “We’ll just raise the price!” No so fast! Your pricing needs to be in line with what works on television and based on the format you use.
General rule of thumb — $39.99 and up requires a half hour show. Under $39.95 can work as a
However, I would even go so far as to say, a short form commercial needs to be at a price point of $29.95 or less. Again, there are always exceptions to the rule, but you want a short form spot to be in that range. Now, you could do a soft offer, or lead generation offer, without a price. Pricing and offer development is a critical part of what makes a show work and you need the proper guidance to help you make those important decisions
Mistake: Creating a short form spot for a product that needs a half hour infomercial.
There are many products that are simple enough to sell in a short form commercial, but others need more explanation, an argument for their purchase, examples of results, testimonials from users, and so much more. Choosing the right medium, either a short form commercial or half hour show is a very, very important decision.
Definitions: Short form commercials are generally created in several lengths so you can run them interchangeably; 120 seconds, 60 seconds (& 30 seconds used to push retail). Half hour shows are really 28 minutes and 30 seconds long.
#5 Building without A Good Blueprint
Mistake: Not being fully involved in the scripting and working out the details on paper before shooting.
Scripting is the first phase of the project where the rubber truly hits the road. Scripting is one of the most critically important aspects of the project, since it is the creation of your blueprint for everything you will eventually build upon and is the foundation of all your television marketing efforts. And this is the part of the project, you as the product owners need to be fully involved and take the time to dissect, review, ponder, discuss and even debate.
How is the product being presented, what are the demonstrations, who will be speaking, does it really convey all the products features and benefits, what’s the offer, how does it sound and feel? You get the idea. This is where you should be able to visualize how the commercial will eventually become. And this is really your first and last chance at changing your minds about the direction the project will take.
IMPORTANT NOTE: It is much less expensive and time consuming to script out different versions of the spots, and elements in the infomercial, then it is to change them after they have been shot and edited. Paper is cheap, and even if you are incurring additional scripting fees, it is worth every penny you will pay in determining your product’s story on the long run. Additional scripting will cost you a few thousand dollars, additional shooting is $20K per day.
Mistake: Rushing your project as opposed to taking the time to do it right.
This is one of my personal favorites. We get a call from a new client that has never made and infomercial or commercial before and they want the entire project done and on the air in 3 weeks. Well if you were a seasoned infomercial marketing company that knows this business, it can be done. But my first question is what’s the rush, and my second question is if the commercial loses money and does not perform is there still a benefit to you and your brand? In some cases, there is and they need to capitalize on timing, so each situation is unique… however, rarely is that the case.
So, if this is your first foray into this business you need to allot more time. An important part of the process is not just completing the project, but educating our clients throughout the process so they can make conscientious and informed decisions along the way. Good scheduling is 30 – 45 days for a short form commercial and 60 – 90 days for a half hour show. Remember the old expression, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” Take your time and do it right.
Mistake: The media and telemarketing can be just as critical as the commercial itself.
So, your infomercial is done and your commercial looks great. You have taken the time to do it right and you know you have a winning ad on your hands. Now what? Now you should buy media, set up telemarketing, fulfillment and develop the backend. A good agency will handle the critical details for you, but it is important to understand the media and telemarketing is almost as important as the creative. If you don’t buy the right time, or get it at the right price your doomed. Buying general media is NOT the same as buying DRTV media time. Again, it is critical you work with a direct response team that not only understand how DRTV works and can analyze the media. How much your cost per call and cost per order was at the end of the test.
Believe it or not your telemarketing can be just as important. Image this… the commercial and the media are working great… the phone is ringing off the hook, only to discover your call center can’t handle the volume and is missing calls! Literally not picking up the phone for customers trying to buy your product! (True Story) Again, this is where it is important to work with specialists. There is a systematic and proven approach to making, marketing, and profiting from the DRTV business. This is a science, and when it’s done right it’s the science of success.
#2 Running A Marathon and Giving Up 2 Feet from The Finish Line
Mistake: Not budgeting properly for testing and not properly analyzing the results.
There are instances of projects that simply don’t have a pulse and have no chances of resuscitation, period. No matter what you offer, or what you do, it’s not going to make money on TV.
But the truth is we see far more projects that fall into the gray area. Not a bomb and not a runaway success out of the gate. This is where many unseasoned companies fail. They make a spot, test the media, and get marginal results. Not terrible, not great, but don’t understand how to develop the backend or create additional streams of profit and income with upsells, cross marketing promotions, online digital media, etc. that can turn a so-so project into a winning campaign. It is at this critical juncture where the project is abandoned or left for dead.
You have to ask the right questions; Can the offer be tweaked? Did the creative fall short? Is the offer right? Is there lots of interest but a low close rate? Was the media, right? Was it the right call center?
True Story: We had produced a great spot, the offer was strong, the product seemed like a winner, and after the media ran… we heard crickets. We got just a handful of calls. The results were so bad, I called the 800#’s myself to make sure they were working. The client was ready to abandon the whole project and write it off as a bomb.
So, we went to work to analyze all the data. Incredibly the duplication company made a simple mistake. They only put the 800#’s up for 15 seconds in the call to action in a half hour infomercial. So, the phone number was only on the screen for 45 seconds in an entire half hour show! We corrected the problem, retested the show and the project ultimately went on to generate over $30 million dollars in sales!
With the right guidance, it can be much clearer what can and needs to be done. Remember this is like running a marathon, so plan on taking your project the distance.
Mistake: Not bringing in the right partners when it makes sense.
100% of nothing is nothing. Now this is not a requirement, but it’s not a bad idea to find the right infomercial marketing partner. Unless you are a seasoned direct marketer with long standing retail relationships it may
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